Opposition motion on the Richmond quarry defeated

A motion by the Opposition New Democratic Party, was defeated in Parliament on Thursday, May 5, after a lively debate from both government and opposition parliamentarians.

The motion was moved by Opposition leader, Dr Godwin Friday on Thursday, May 5 and debate on the motion, which called for an immediate halt to the quarry project at Richmond in North Leeward.

The debate continued when Parliament resumed on Tuesday, May 10.

The project is being undertaken by the St Lucia firm, Rayneau Construction.

“This is not a fly by night project,” Member of Parliament for West Kingstown, Daniel Cummings said during his contribution to the debate.

He lamented the potential dust problems that people in the area will encounter.

Cummings further argued that having a quarry in that area will endanger the water supply.

The NDP Chairman also alleged that the quarry project is being driven by greed.

Tourism minister, Carlos James was one of the speakers on the government side contributing to debate on the motion.

James, who is Parliamentary Representative for North Leeward disclosed that he has requested the formation of a government interagency to craft a framework to monitor the operations at the quarry.

This will be done from inception to the end of the project.

“They will monitor every single movement that takes place on the quarry,” James said.

He pointed out that all the necessary legislative framework is in place.

Officers are mandated to monitor, to respond and to act “ in the event of any breach of the conditions set by the Planning Board for the approval of this quarry operation.”

According to James, the multi-agency is comprised of “technical professionals.”

Controversy erupted when word about the project broke and it was revealed that farmers who cultivated crops on lands earmarked for the project had no knowledge about it. At that time, the operators were already on the ground. The government has since sought to stem the damage and mend fences with the farmers and others who claim that they would be adversely affected by the operations of the quarry. James, in his contribution to the debate spoke about levels of compensation that would be paid to affected farmers and that around 10 acres of more suitable lands would be provided to resettle displaced farmers.

After the Opposition leader ended the debate on the motion, members were asked to vote.

Speaker of the House of Assembly, Rochelle Forde stated at the end of the voting that “this motion has not been carried.”